Chicago

When you hear the names of John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Bob Fosse, you immediately think of great Broadway plays, so having the Broadway production of Chicago at the CIBC Theatre is bound to attract Chicagoans to the theater. Likewise, the 25th Anniversary of Chicago tour of great jazz, mixed with scandalizing murder and a little razzle-dazzle, make for sensational headlines in Chicago's roaring '20s.

Set in Chicago in the jazz age, the 1926 musical about accused murderers Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner reported in the Chicago Tribune, CHICAGO shares this infamous storyline replacing the real-life women, with Roxie Hart, a housewife, nightclub chorus girl, and cabaret singer, Velma Kelly, who both has the slick-talking lawyer name, Billy Flynn working his magic to get them free.

The cast of CHICAGO features Katie Frieden as Roxie Hart, Logan Floyd as Velma Kelly, Jeff Brooks as Billy Flynn, Christina Wells as Matron "Mama" Morton, Brian Kalinowski as Amos Hart, and G.A. James as Mary Sunshine. The sexy dancers and famous catchy music and lyrics of Kander and Ebb (All That Jazz, When You're Good To Mama, Me and My Baby, and Razzle Dazzle) itself would delight audiences; however, I thought the first act of this play was lifeless, missing the 20's passion seen from other Chicago musical plays. The Cell Block Tango, Frieden, and Brooks's "We Both Reached for the Gun" musical and dance numbers are fantastic. Still, some of that missing glitz and glamor came from the set's uninspiring stage and the lack of razzle-dazzle in some of the singing.

Christina Wells, Jeff Brooks, and G.A. James were outstanding in their performance; however, I was slightly impressed with Katie Frieden as Roxie Hart. Not to say it was a bad performance, because she was terrific in some scenes, but Frieden's overall performance could have been better.

My first thought of Logan Floyd, who started as Velma Kelly in the 2020 National Tour of Chicago, was that she looked like Liza Manelli, who played in Cabaret — until I saw a picture of Chita Rivera. Floyd looks strikingly more like Rivera, who played Velma in the original Broadway production of Chicago, and is just as impressive in her role. But the night's show-stealing performance goes to Brian Kalinowski as Amos Hart. Kalinowski performed "Mister Cellophane" to perfection, and when he didn't get his walked off exist music provided to flamboyant lawyer Billy Flynn, his walking off the stage was priceless.

The second act was more engaging and provided better energy, which started with an incredible Entr'acte from the band. Wells and Floyd were outstanding in singing the hit song, Class, providing that old-time 20's nostalgic feel. This production added more comedic humor than I would have liked, but overall, it's something I recommend seeing before it departs on January 29.

Let's Play Theatrical Review Recommends Chicago at The CIBC Theatre.

CIBC Theatre

CHICAGO

Book by Fred Ebb & Bob Fosse

Music by John Kander

Now Playing until January 29, 2023